Just Like the Movies
by MenShouldBeLikeKleenex
Summary: Cory hung up her coat as a (semi professional) criminal three years ago and was content to let the rest of her life play out in relaxation. But of course, that couldn't happen. Cory soon found herself working with the Avengers in hopes that her intricate knowledge of computers would help them take down their new foe, Ultron. (OC/Pietro Maximoff) M for language.
1. Chapter 1

Cory sat in the quinjet with the Hulk. Well, it was technically Bruce, but still, the freaking Avenger had parked his ass in the seat across from her in a freaking jet. She snuck a quick look over the top of her laptop, before looking back at the lines of code and readings flitting across the screen. He wasn't looking at her, but she really didn't care if he was interested in her or not. It's not like she was an Avenger.

Really, she only had a vague idea of why she was enlisted to work with Earth's Mightiest Heroes, but that's what happened. She was just a kid- if twenty-two counts as a kid now-a-days- that was good with computers. But they had Tony freaking Stark. It's not like she was better than him. At least, that's what she thought. She never challenged him because she was too scared to even open her mouth around the intimidating heroes when it comes to their work. They saved the world, and she messed with people in a McDonald's in her small hometown in Pennsylvania.

Tony Stark had asked for her help two days ago. She really didn't get most of what he was saying, but from what she got, he had created a robot, robot went beserk, now they needed her to get a read on said robot from a safe distance to find any weaknesses. The hows and whys were lost on her, but when an Avenger asks for your help, you get up off your ass and help. No questions. The no questions part, however, is why she has no idea what's going on, so maybe that wasn't the best idea.

"How's it coming?" Bruce asked, his voice quiet. In Cory's short two days with the Avengers, she found that he was the easiest to get along with. He was sciencey, so he knew what she was talking about when she talked about computers, and he was a genuinely nice guy.  
"She got along with Tony quite well since he had the sciencey thing going also, but he was much too wild for the relatively reserved Cory. Well, it's not like she's quiet or docile. She's loud and obnoxious most of the time and has a mouth that could make a sailor blush, but with people she didn't know, she didn't talk much.

Black Widow just straight up terrified her. And when she's scared, she rambles so she's stayed far, far away from the assassin. Hawkeye, on the other hand, she was friendly with. They shared the same type of twisted humor. They just haven't talked much because he's been flying the plane. Which is important.

Thor… Well she really didn't get Thor. She was always into the paranormal, mythos included, but now that she was faced with the real thing- the extremely hot real thing- she couldn't quite wrap her head around him. But then again, when she explained what she did to him, he couldn't really wrap his head around that either

"Good," She muttered, "... I think."

"Glad to hear the confidence," Bruce chuckled. He sat up a bit and stretched his arms overhead. With a glance at his watch, he frowned.

"I don't really know what I'm looking for," She elaborated, "I've never scanned a sentient robot before. But what I'm seeing, it's really strange. From what I can make out, he seems like a very murderous robot." She looked up and caught his worried look. She glanced at her own watch, "I'm sure they're fine."

"Yeah," He sighed, but stood up nonetheless, running a hand through his curly hair. "I just want to go look outside. See if I can see what's going on."

"I don't think that's a good…" Cory started before she was cut off by the door to the quinjet opening. "Bruce, we should stay here."

He ignored her, calling out as he walked down the ramp, disappearing from Cory's view. She blew out a breath, looking back at her screen, finding something peculiar. She started to investigate when she heard banging coming from the outside. Worried for her new found friend, she put her laptop on the seat beside her and hauled herself up. She shook her leg awake, and slowly crept down the ramp.

"Bruce?" She called softly, hoping he just tripped or something. But of course, life hates her so that's not what she found. She saw three people standing outside the quinjet, Bruce, who was slowly becoming the Hulk, and a man and a woman she did not know. Her eyes were the size of saucers when the Hulk jumped away. She slowly lowered her eyes to the two other, who watched in triumph as the Avenger fled.

"Imma just go back inside," She muttered, slowly backing into the safety of the quinjet. Her heart pumped wildly when their eyes, one pair an icy blue and the other a harsh brown, fell onto her. They looked at each other, apparently having a silent conversation, which was confirmed as the man nodded. His unruly silver hair, lean body, and arrogant posture screamed danger, which Cory took as a warning to get out of there, and she finally turned fully around to run the last foot into the quinjet.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, this is just gonna be a quick author's note. Now this story is prewritten, so updates will be frequent, and it's also relatively short. Same with this chapter. Prewritten and short. A big shout out to my friend, 42ndHex, for helping me with this story.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel.**

She didn't even make it one step before she was swept off her feet and thrown on her butt in the dust outside the quinjet. Her head spun, and she could barely make out the smirks that resided on the two of the guys faces. Wait… Did he have two faces before? Great, now she's seeing double.

"Are you fucking kidding me," Cory exclaimed, feeling very much like she was going to puke, "Why does this shit always happen to me? I'm a good person… most of the time."

"You, a good person?" The man laughed, staring condescendingly down his nose at the girl at his feet. "You're team cannot be good. You create wars, and then death come soon after."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Cory demanded, standing up on shaky legs. Her eyes just barely caught the sight of Iron Man flying in the direction the Hulk went. "I'm not a fucking Avenger. I'm just the tech crew."

"Brother, I think she speaks the truth," The woman said, coming up and laying a hand on the man's shoulder. Now that they were both closer and she was standing, she saw that they were both taller than her. And faster. She really could not get away.

"Are you sure?" The man said, looking the girl up and down. He admitted that she didn't look like much. Her short, brown hair was messy and choppy, her glasses falling off her face, and a baggy hoodie that fell just below her butt. She didn't look like she could fight or pose a threat.

Cory stood a bit taller as she saw the man assess her, but almost fell over when a giant metal ass robot landed by the two people. "I swear to fucking god if some other weird ass shit happens to me, I'm gonna flip shit."

"Children," the robot said, obviously referring to the two fully grown people in front of Cory. Searching her brain, Cory concluded that robot's name was Ultamate or something along those lines. "Why don't you introduce me to your friend?"

The two looked at the girl one more time, before looking at Ultron.

"Cory Howlett," The girl muttered, pushing her glasses up her nose. The man did not miss the shaking in her hands. "And you are?"

"Ultron," The robot smiled. "And this is Wanda and Pietro." The robot walked towards the Cory, and she slowly backed up. "You're a hacker. That's why you're here."

"Ummmmmmmmmm," Cory said dumbly. Her brain, and by default her mouth, failed her and refused to work, leaving her staring up into the red eyes of a metal man, her jaw working like a fish out of water. "Yeah."

"You know," Ultron cooed, placing what she assumed was supposed to be a calming hand on her shoulder, "I could you someone with your," pause, "skill set."  
"I'm guessing I don't have a choice in the matter," Cory stuttered.

Pietro and Wanda watched on, slightly perturbed. This was not in plan. They weren't supposed to kidnap some girl. After what happened to them, they couldn't stand to watch someone to be hurt like that (except, of course, Tony Stark). She was obviously terrified, and could quite possibly be having a heart attack, but could they really say anything to Ultron? No. So they watched, Wanda calming Cory's mind to ease her terror; Pietro tensing his muscles to keep from springing into action.

"No, you don't," Ultron smiled.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel**

You know, it was just Cory's luck to be kidnapped by a fucking psycho robot. That was all she could think about as she sat in the back of some sort of flying vehicle (it wasn't really a plane after all) with the two weirdos that worked for the psycho. Her thoughts, which still felt jumbled from the shock of seeing Ultron, switched constantly between being extremely pissed of to being scared out her mind.

Wanda kept a close eye on the girl and her emotions, making sure she didn't freak out too much. She turned to Pietro, who kept fidgeting in his seat, hoping that he might ease the tension since he was better at social interactions. Before he got the message though, Cory spoke.

"Why are you working with Ultron?" She whispered. She knew that the robot could most likely hear them, so she didn't want to speak loudly.

"Because he can help us," Pietro answered. It was the first time he spoke or even looked at the girl since Ultron decided to take her with them. "We want revenge."

"He's insane," Cory said leaning forward, "I was in his code, I saw how he thinks."

"Why do you work with the Avengers?" Pietro glared. He too leaned forward, making sure he was in Cory's space. Wanda sat off to the side, not wanting to get involved. She wanted what Pietro wanted, but she knew that the girl was just an innocent kid swept up into the Avengers' mess.

"For the money mostly," She huffed. Pietro masked his surprise, and was about to reply, but Cory pushed forward, "But even if I wasn't paid, I'd still help them. They're trying to save the world."

"They only bring more destruction to the world!" He hissed, moving back slightly. "Tony Stark, the man you're defending, is the reason our parents are dead."

Wanda, sensing Pietro's anger and instability, picked up where he left off. "We were all having dinner when bombs hit our building. Our parents died, but Pietro managed to pull us under the bed," Wanda stopped now, taking in Cory's face. It was sympathetic, but also unapologetic. Her brown eyes, almost hidden behind the glare of her glasses, stared at the two of them with a cold detachment. Wanda, slightly taken aback, pushed forward, "Then a second bomb hit, but it didn't go off. We could see the name on the side; Stark. We sat there for two days, waiting for the bomb to go off."

"That is why," Pietro interjected, "we side with Ultron."

There was a silence for a while. Pietro and Wanda stared at Cory, while she stared right back, not backing down. Wanda could feeling the roiling emotions inside her, waiting for the moment to blow.

"Tony did make weapons a few years ago," Cory said finally, "He made weapons of war and destruction, but he gave it up. He tried to turn a new leaf and help people. He's not that man anymore."  
"You think," Pietro growled, "that makes killing our parents ok?"

"No," Her eyes narrowed. The anger in his words fuelled the fire in hers, "Tony has done unimaginably terrible things, but so has everyone else. Get off your fucking high horse and realize second chances are a goddamn thing."

"Excuse me?" Pietro exclaimed in shock. This girl had the nerve to talk to him like that? "He doesn-"

"Everyone deserve a second chance," She glared, her whole body tensing in anger. She sat up straighter, causing the startled man to lean back in surprise. "Yeah, Tony did horrible shit, but he's trying to make up for it. You think he can't change, can't realize the things he's done?"

Wanda, who had been silent through this exchange, gasped when the girl's thoughts screamed in her head. Pietro instantly had his arms around her, watching in concern as her hands flew towards her head. Wanda drew in a shaky breath and said, "You speak not only of Stark, but of yourself."

Cory drew back as if slapped, pressing her back against her seat. She seemed to shrink before their eyes, becoming a small child in a matter of seconds. Wanda urged her on, "Speak. Tell us your story." Pietro looked at his sister in alarm, but slowly leaned back against his seat, his arms still around his sister.

"Um, no thanks?" Cory said. "I deleted myself from existance for a reason."

.

"What?" Pietro questioned quirking an eyebrow. "You… deleted yourself?"

"Yeah," She said. She didn't go into detail, at least not out loud, but Wanda could hear her thoughts, so she heard her answer. _I was in trouble, had to protect my family._

"We will not harm you or your family," Wanda smiled, reaching out with her powers, calming and persuading her. Cory looked at her, her eyes momentarily glowing red, causing Pietro to look at his sister in alarm. "Just so she opens up."

Because of Wanda's influence, when Cory looked at them she was reminded of her own family (minus the silver hair and weird powers). "Um," She started, confused by the sudden turn of events, but going with it nonetheless, "I was born to the typical nuclear family. You know, working dad, stay at home mom, and two kids.

"My mom worked after my brother was born, but had to quit when I came along because I was always sick. I was home a lot and had a lot of time on my hands, so I got into computers. Like really into it. My mom didn't really get it, but she let it slide 'cause it would get me out of bed.

"When I was fifteen, a freshman in highschool, I met this guy. He was seventeen. He knew the really interesting things about hacking like changing stop lights, pulling up information on people almost instantaneously, and even stopping a pacemaker, all from a cell phone. That kind of power… It goes to your head. I stole money, I destroyed people's careers, I just plain hurt people. When I was seventeen, I knew I had to change. So I did. I stopped the criminal activity and just used my skills to mess with people in McDonald's. I got a second chance. Then, some of past mistakes caught up to me. People wanted to hurt me, and I knew they would go for my family, so I erased everything. All the information that linked me to them was gone, and I had to leave. I haven't seen my parents or brother since. That's why I will fight for Tony's second chance. To prove that I deserve it, that maybe I'll get to see my family again one day."

The twins looked at Cory, saying nothing. Pietro looked at Wanda, knowing that she was already in the process of getting a read on her. She nodded at him, and he felt his anger towards the girl dissipate. He still held onto his anger for Stark, but he let go of his earlier feelings, trusting Wanda.

"I have seen into your head-"

"I am so sorry," Cory muttered.

Wanda smiled slightly, and Pietro let out a quiet laugh, before the younger twin continued, "I trust you."

And then Cory's mind broke again, causing both of the twins to chuckle. Pietro leaned forward, closing her still open mouth with two fingers. He slowly pulled his hand back, noting with satisfaction that her faced turned red. It was pretty cute.

"Children," The silvery voice called from the front. Cory snapped out of her stupor, looking at the twins with barely masked alarm. "We're here."


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you for reading! Please feel free to leave your thoughts and criticisms.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel**

In the end, Cory was the only one that Ultron took into the building. Pietro and Wanda stayed on the plane, mulling over the conversation they had with the hacker.

"Wanda," Pietro whispered, "That girl, Cory, she does not belong in this fight."

Wanda nodded, "I know." Then she stood, Pietro following shortly after. Even if Ultron was the means of exacting their revenge, the twins could not let an innocent bystander be hurt (even if said bystander is involved with the Avengers). Soon enough the twins were in the building, hovering outside the door. Inside, Ultron stood near an asian woman, who they surmised to be the reason they made the trip. In the corner, huddled over a laptop, sat Cory. Pietro couldn't see her eyes due to the glare of her glasses, but from the way that her lip was stuck between her teeth, he could guess she was nervous.

"I think," They heard her mumble, her voice trembling slightly, "I have the algorithm down. You should be ready to hook it up."

"Good," Ultron smiled. Without turning around, he said, "Oh and you two can come in." Looking at each other, the twins entered the room, Pietro catching Cory's desperate glance. His head turned away from her when Wanda walked towards the machine that they heard the asian woman, who was supposedly named Dr. Cho, call the Cradle.

"We're uploading your cerebral matrix now that the algorithm is done," Dr. Cho said. As she moved around the room, Pietro caught an eerie blue color to her eyes. Putting the thought aside, he watched as Wanda moved even closer to the machine.

"I can read him," Wanda said softly. Catching Cory's eyes, he saw her eyes widen and her head shake rapidly from side to side. "He is dreaming."

"I wouldn't call it dreaming," Dr. Cho said. Pietro tilted his head, unsure of what Cory was saying. What did she want him to stop? "It's Ultron's base consciousness. Informational noise. Soon-"

"How soon?" Ultron interjected, causing Cory to drop her eyes to her laptop. He held up his hands to show that he had no bad intentions, "I'm not being pushy."

"Yeah, not pushy at all," Pietro heard Cory mutter.

"Now, now Cory," Ultron said moving towards her and the doctor, "We've talked about this."

While Ultron and the doctor were distracted, Wanda walked up to the cradle and laid her hand down on the side. With a gasp, her eyes widened, and she recoiled in pain. In a blink of an eye, Pietro was holding her, comforting her. The only sound in the room for a moment was the rapid clicks of the keys on Cory's computer.

"How could you?" She gasped out, causing Pietro to look at her in confusion. He shot a glance at Cory, hoping she might be able to decipher what was going, but she looked only at her computer screen, her lip once again stuck between her teeth.

"How could I what?" Ultron said, towering over the twins, exuding power.

"You said…" She started, shaking her head, trying to clear her thoughts. Pietro again looked at the robot, pulling his sister slightly closer to him. "You said we would destroy the Avengers! Make a better world!"

"It _will_ be better," Ultron said.

"When everyone is dead?" Wanda demanded, causing Pietro's eyes to go wide. Finally understanding the situation, Pietro thought quickly through the possibilities. They were gonna have to get out of here, but he couldn't leave Cory here with this maniac. He also couldn't carry both her and Wanda out. He would have to make a choice, and he knew who he would choose.

"That is not…" Ultron said. Cory looked up, stopping her typing momentarily. "The human race will have every opportunity to improve."

"Not if their dead," Cory mumbled at the same time Pietro said, "And if they don't?" Ultron decided to ignore Cory. She closed her eyes for a seconds and then continued to type.

"Ask Noah," Ultron said in reply to Pietro.

Wanda looked at him, tears in her eyes. "You're a madman," she whispered. She thought that they were doing what's right, but now it seemed like they were no better than those they wished vengeance upon.

"There were more than a dozen extinctions levels before even the dinosaurs got theirs!" Ultron said stalking towards the twins. "When the earth starts to settle, God throws a stone at it." He stopped by the cradle, "And trust me, he's winding up."

"Shit," they heard Cory mutter, but they're attention was on Ultron, and Ultron's was on them. The steady clicks of her keyboard continued a second later.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, bending slightly, "but we have to evolve. There's no room for the weak." He slowly caressed the cradle, right where the face of the Frankenstein's Monster was.

"And who decides who is weak?" Pietro asked, walking forward slightly. On his side, he could see the doctor blink, and knew that Wanda had freed her.

"Life," He said with a strange, metallic smile, "Life always decides." He paused now to examine something no one else could see. Pietro made his way back to his sister, and lightly kissed her on the head. "There's incoming. The quinjet. We need to get moving."

"That's not a problem," the doctor said. She walked up to the control panel on the cradle, typing a few things onto the screen. The screens behind her flashed, showing she had shut down the machine, causing Ultron to groan. He raised his hand and blasted her back. Pietro heard Cory gasp behind him.

"Come on," She muttered before forcefully hitting one last button on her keyboard. Ultron screamed, his back arching slightly as if in pain. The hacker slammed the laptop shut, jumping up when a shiny arm clumsily shot its way towards her head.

"What did you do to me?" Ultron growled, trying- and failing- to move towards her. She didn't answer him, just shimmed past the flailing robot, stopping when she found the door blocked by the twins.


	5. Chapter 5

"Pietro," Wanda said as she took Cory's hand, "take her, find the Avengers."

"Sister-" Pietro said, shaking his head.

"I will follow," Wanda cut him off, "I am not weak. I will be there soon."

"Um," Cory said, not mentioning the fact that the woman still held her hand."We only have like five more minutes before my little trick wears off. So like, you should let me out... And get out yourselves."

"Pietro," Wanda hissed, her eyes flashing dangerously. With a glare, she placed Cory's hand in his. Pietro's fingers slowly gripped Cory's smaller hand. In the back of his mind, he noticed how pleasant the soft skin of her palm felt against the rough skin of his. He scoffed at himself, thinking that this was no time to be thinking about how soft and warm some girl's hand was. But it was soft. And he was thinking about it.

"Stop," Ultron growled, moving an inch closer to the trio. Finally, Pietro snapped out of his thoughts and nodded to Wanda. In one swift motion, he swept Cory up into his arms, enjoying the startled yelp she let out as he started to run. He chuckled as she closed her eyes, and pulled her closer to his chest to try and minimize the effects of his speed.

In a matter of minutes, Pietro stopped, putting her down. When she stopped wobbling, she pushed up her long sleeve and looked at a gleaming watch. "You still have three minutes," She said, looking up at the taller man, who only stared back, "Go back and get her. I'll find my way." With that she pulled out her phone (How that got past Ultron, he had no idea) and started to walk away.

"Wait here," He called, "I will be back with Wanda, and we will find the Avengers together."

"Sure thing, Speedy," She shrugged, stopping in her tracks to turn towards the speedster, "Just hurry, You only have two minutes twenty seconds."

"That's plenty of time," he smirked. She hated to admit it, but he actually looked pretty cute when he smirked (though, Cory thought, he always looked so very sexy). With flash of blue he was gone.

As he left, Cory sorted through her thoughts, going over what she saw in Ultron's quote unquote head. She was in there twice, got a good a look at everything, noticed some things that Ultron probably wanted to keep hidden. Some weaknesses. Cory smirked. She knew how to break him, destroy everything that floated around in his twisted mind. She could create a virus capable of annihilating the monster that threatened the world. She would finally be a hero who deserved a second chance.

With a small sigh, her smirk turned into a smile. Cory leaned against the wall beside her, watching the news and the city's security cameras on her phone, waiting for all hell to break loose.

Soon Pietro was once again next to Cory, this time with his sister in tow. She peeked at the time on her phone and let out a breath as her mental countdown ended. "Cutting it kinda close there, Kid Flash," She murmured pushing off the wall. Pietro only smirked in return.

"What did you do to Ultron?" Wanda asked, stepping towards her. "Can you do it to him permanently?"

She shook her head, "Sadly, no I can't. My little trick actually did several things to him, all of which could be fixed once my encryption was decoded. And because I was inside his coding, I knew how long that would take." She paused, making sure that they were following her. When she saw that they weren't totally confused, she continued. "First, I sent out an EMP- which originated from small devices I always keep on my person- stunning him, allowing time for the rest of my actions to take affect. I switched the control to his body parts, like trying to move his left arm would move his right leg. Those would constantly change, though, so he couldn't get a grip on what was happening. I also lowered his processing speed, which caused his sluggish movements."

"That is amazing," Pietro breathed. He looked at the girl in front of him, and saw, for the first time, why she was in that quinjet. She wasn't just a lost girl who some how found her way onto the team. She was a dangerous hacker, who could do almost anything with a computer. She had told them what she was capable of, but seeing it in action, he found himself thinking of the girl in a different light. And man, did she look good in that light.

"Thanks," She smiled, causing Pietro to smile back. Embarrassed, Cory looked down at her phone, which make Pietro's smile turn into a devilish smirk. Wanda rolled her eyes, easily hearing her brother's thoughts and beginnings of a crush. Then Cory froze.

"What is the matter?" Wanda asked, sensing the shift instantly.

"I thought we had more time," Cory muttered. The twins looked at each other over her head, confused. "Ultron's out in the city. With Cap."

"Do you know where?" Pietro asked. He moved to stand beside her, looking over her shoulder at her phone. He was surprised to see that she was not looking at the news, but was in fact looking at the security camera scattered throughout the city.

"A train," She muttered. "Shit, he's gonna need help."

"I will go," Pietro said, puffing his chest slightly, "Wanda will take you to the Avengers."

"No," She said shaking her head. "Speed won't be enough. He'll need both of you."

"What about you?" Wanda asked.

"Just drop me off by the quinjet. It's not too far from here," Cory said with a grin. Pietro put a hand on her shoulder, grinning at Wanda before scooping up the smaller girl and carrying her to the quinjet to be picked up. It only took him about half a minute to return and pick up Wanda, carrying her to the train to save Captain America.


	6. Chapter 6

**So this is a shorter chapter, but after this it really kicks up! Also, I am so thankful for everyone who is reading this story. And you know, I really hate to ask, but reviews would make my day. Now, I'm not saying to write like a full out review, even just a small "it's cool" would make me happy.**

 **In other news, you can find a short playlist for this story on my profile. Feel free to send me songs you want to add!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel**

* * *

Clint grinned when he saw Cory appear on the highway below him. With expert piloting, he hovered next to the road she stood on, opening the bay doors. After a moment's hesitation, and a quick look up towards the sky, she jumped onto the quinjet. She quickly made her way inside to the passenger seats.

"Are you ok?" Clint asked as he pulled away from his quick detour. He quickly realigned the jet with the now flying truck.

"Peachy," Cory said slumping down in the seat.

"The package is airborne," He said into the headset, before holding up the 'one moment please' finger at Cory. "I have a clean shot." There was silence as he listened to the reply. "What the hell you doing-" pause again. "How do you want me to take it?"

Cory snorted at that one, causing Clint to glare at her from his position at the controls. "Nat, we got to go," He said a moment later. The bay doors opened again, and the whole jet swung around. Cory gripped her seat belt tightly, silently thanking herself for deciding to buckle up.

Then came the cradle. It crashed into the back, nearly taking out Cory's legs as she pulled them up to her chest for safety. There was one problem though. There was no Natasha. "Nat?" Clint called, into the back.

"She's not here," Cory hollered. "I think a robot got her."

"God…" Clint whispered. "Cap, you've seen Nat?" He was almost frantic. "Do you have eyes on Nat?" Cory could see him twisting in his seat, trying to find her. A second later, the quinjet turned around and jolted as the speed increased. From her seat in the back, she could feel the anger and desperation coming from Clint, but not knowing how to help, she stayed in her seat, chewing her lip.

For the entire ride to Tony's they sat in silence, Cory patiently letting Clint work through his emotions. In all honesty, Cory was never one to comfort others. She was someone who told you to suck it up and move on despite the pain. She believed that if you stopped and thought about why life sucks, your misdeeds would catch up and _make_ your life suck. Maybe her philosophy hurt her more than it helped her, but it got her through the pain of leaving her life behind, and it got her to where she was today. Small victories.

When they got to Tony's, Cory sat in the quinjet until they had unloaded the cradle from the back. After they finished, she stepped carefully down the ramp, taking in the lab with a critical eye. When Tony saw her, a huge smile appeared on his face. He rushed to her and- much to the girl's chagrin- engulfed her in a hug. Smiling back awkwardly, Cory pulled away, making sure to put some distance between them.

"Well, look what they hawk dragged in," Tony said.

"That was a horrible joke," Bruce muttered from his place beside the cradle.

"Sorry," he smirked, indicating that he was not, in fact, sorry. "I was worried when you disappeared. I recruited you, so I actually felt kinda guilty."

"Thanks… I think," Cory said, "Hey, do you have my laptop?"

"Yeah," Tony said, "It's on the counter over there."

"Cool," Cory said, "'Cause I need to see something."

"This is no time to be checking your email," Tony said jokingly. He threw in an eye roll for good measure.

"I'm not checking my email, asshole," Cory said. She pointedly ignored Tony's look of mock hurt to scoot her way over to her laptop, avoiding Clint's depressed gaze and aura as she went. "I'm doing something much, much more productive."


	7. Chapter 7

**Just a heads up I'm going on vacation on Sunday, so I won't be updating from the 26th through the 31st. After I come back, I'll be posting the final five chapters. Just so you know, I do have several oneshots thought out for the story, and will be writing and posting them when I finish it. Thank you to Kaia for reviewing!**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel**

* * *

"Anything on Nat?" Bruce murmured as Tony walked into the room. Cory looked up from her seat on the left, her laptop hanging precariously off her lap. Clint, who had been brooding in the corner by the cradle, also looked up, hopeful that there was some news on his friend.

"Haven't heard," Tony said, "But she's alive or Ultron would be rubbing our faces in it." Clint seemed to accept this answer as he visibly relaxed. He vaulted over Ultron's mini me, coming to a stop on the other side. Cory went back to her computer.

"This things's sealed tight," Clint said, resting a hand on the smooth glass top.

"We're gonna need to access the program," Bruce said, "Break it down from within."

Tony made a noise of acknowledgement, turning to Clint who had been walking towards Cory. "Anyway Nat would send you a message outside the internet? Old school spy stuff?" He inquired, hoping that it would be positive.

"There's some nets I can cast," Clint said. "Yeah. Alright, I'll find her." With that Clint left, leaving the two nerdiest Avengers with the nerdiest honorary Avenger. You know what that means? Nothing. The two nerds worked on their little child that could and Cory worked on the virus that she didn't tell them about. She wanted to make sure it worked before she went around getting their hopes up.

"I can work on tissue degeneration," Bruce said as he pressed buttons on the cradle, "if you can fry whatever operational system Cho implanted."

"Yeah about that," Tony said scratching the back of his head.

"Tony, you better not be thinking what I think you're thinking," Cory growled. The two scientist looked at her, startled. They had almost forgotten she was there. "Whatever's in there, it can't be good." She left out the part where she helped implant it, not wanting to make it seem like she was the bad guy.

"Cory's right," Bruce said, his jaw working,

"You've got to trust me," Tony said. He took a step towards Bruce and watched as the man took a step back.

"I kinda don't," He stammered, not really believe that his friend was implying that they let loose another robot after the last one he made turned out to be fucking psychotic.

"I don't either," Cory called.

"Our ally," Tony said, narrowing his eyes and continuing his advance on the quiet man, "the guy protecting the military's codes, I found him." With that he flicked his wrist, a card in hand, calling forth an interesting image. Cory looked at the hologram in confusion, unsure of what she was looking at. It was an orange sphere. But when she looked closer, she realized what she she was seeing. One of Stark's AIs. She had seen images of it when she had… researched Tony after he asked for her help.

"Hello, Dr. Banner," The orange blob said. It amused Cory that he had a British accent.

"Ultron didn't go after JARVIS because he was angry," Tony said, leaning forward as if he was divulging a juicy piece of gossip, "he attacked him because he was scared of what he can do." Bruce and Cory both looked at Tony with barely masked skepticism. Cory, though, had more of an excuse than Bruce. She had no idea what happened that night Ultron was 'born.'

"So JARVIS went underground, scattered, dumped his memory," Tony continued, "but not his protocols. He didn't even know he was in there until I pieced him together."

"So," Bruce whispered, "you want me to help you put JARVIS into this thing?" When Bruce said it like that, Cory admitted to herself that it was stupid. Well, she knew it was stupid, but this solidified it.

"No, of course not," Tony said, "I wanna help you put JARVIS into this thing."

"Um, that's the same thing, dude," Cory said, once again calling the scientists' attention towards her. "Either way, it's a stupid fucking idea."

"Suppose it wasn't," Tony exclaimed, exasperated.

"But you just assume that JARVIS' operational matrix can beat Ultron's?" Bruce said calmly, trying not to strangle the billionaire because he knew Pepper would rip him a new one if he did.

"JARVIS had been beating him from inside without knowing it," Tony said. "This is the opportunity. We can create Ultron's perfect self, without the homicidal glitches he thinks are his winning personality. We have to."

"I think it's worth a go," JARVIS said causing Tony to smirk triumphantly.

"I'm in a loop," Bruce said. He backed away, his hands coming to rest on his head before he waved them around. "I'm- I'm caught in a time loop. This is exactly where it all went wrong!"

"I know," Tony said. He held his hands out in a peaceful gesture. "I know what everyone's gonna say-"

"That you're fucking insane?" Cory growled. Tony just pretended that he didn't hear her, though she did get a nice glare from said man. Why did no one pay attention to her? Was it because she was so young? Or maybe it was her delivery. Yeah… it was probably that.

"But they're already saying it," Tony continued, resting a hand on a visibly agitated Bruce's shoulder, "We're mad scientists. We're monsters. We gotta own it. Make a stand."

Bruce shook his head, not convinced. Tony, not giving up, pressed on, "It's not a loop, it's the end of the line."

Bruce looked at the cradle, and Cory knew that he was thinking about giving in. But Cory couldn't let that happen. She saw what Ultron planned, and she helped create what was in that box. She couldn't let her forced crime ruin her would be act of heroism.

"Guys… and weird British AI," Cory said, " you need to calm down. I didn't want to tell you yet, but I think I found a way to beat Ultron from the inside. A virus. If you hold you goddamn horses, I can make it so we don't need another robot."

"A virus?" Bruce asked. He was by her side almost instantly, taking in her computer screen with what looked like astonishment. "Like a full blown virus that'll destroy every trace of Ultron from the Earth? That's great!"

"Hopefully," Cory said, pushing her glasses up her nose.

"Even with the virus," Tony said, "we'll still need a way to distract Ultron. That's where JARVIS comes in."

"How long until you can complete the virus?" Bruce asked.

"If nothing goes wrong, two hours."


	8. Chapter 8

**Another shorter chapter. Thank you for 1k views though! I honestly did not think many people would read this story! Thanks again to kaia for reviewing**

 **Enjoy**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel**

* * *

The three of them set to work, Tony and Bruce working on the devil bot Cory still thought was a terrible idea, and Cory on her virus. It was going well. Her work was flowing nicely and she was now convinced that it would work. She would just have to infect Ultron with it, which would be a problem. For it to work, she has to be within a foot of the robot to transfer it to his code. But Cory really couldn't defend herself at the drop of a hat. She needed time and a laptop to even stand a chance out there.

"This framework is not compatible," Tony said breaking the silence that had fallen over the three of them for the last few hours.

"The genetic coding tower is at ninety-seven percent," Bruce said. He hurried around their new creation, making sure that nothing was going wrong on his end. "You have got to upload that schematic in the next three minutes."

"No pressure!" Cory yelled from her seat. Her legs were cramping from keeping them under her for so long, and she really wanted to eat. But in a few more minutes, she'd be done with her part of the defeat Ultron plan.

With a heavy stomp, Steve walked into the lab with Pietro and Wanda in tow, coming in by where Cory had set up shop. Pietro glanced at the girl in amusement, noting her hair was now even messier than before and she was all but curled up in a hard plastic chair.

"I'm only gonna say this once," Steve said, putting on his best 'don't fuck with me' face.

"How about nonce," Tony replied, his face uncharacteristically pissed off.

"Hi, Cap," Cory muttered before looking at the twins, "Pietro, Wanda, nice of you to join the shit storm that is the Avengers."

"Shut it down!" Steve said. He did nod at Cory though, acknowledging her, so he gets an A+ for that.

"Nope not gonna happen," Tony said moving to another monitor.

"You don't know what you're doing," Steve growled. He hated to admit it, but Maximoff was right. Tony can't tell the difference between saving the world and destroying it. It seems the robotic apple didn't fall too far from the crazy tree.

"And you do?" Bruce asked quietly. "She's not in your head?" He pointed to Wanda with quite the hostile look.

"Hey, now," Cory said, "That's not fair."

"No, it is fair," Wanda said with a sigh. She stepped forward, "I know you're angry."

"Oh, we're way past that," Bruce glared, "I could choke the life out of you and never change a shade."

"Banner," Steve said, putting an end to the hostile doctor's little pissy moment, "After everything that's happened-"

"That's nothing compared to what's coming," Tony hissed.

The Avengers, and Wanda, continued to bicker with growing intensity, causing Pietro to look at Cory and roll his eyes. She nodded at him, confirming that she felt the same way. With a smirk at the girl, he started to run, unplugging the cradle. Several things crashed to the ground when he stopped, but all he said was, "No, no, go on," in his cute accent. Cory laughed a bit as she finally put the finishing touches on her virus. "You were saying?"

Her laughter stopped, however, when she heard a gunshot, her hands instinctively covering her ears at the loud noise. She heard Wanda yell for Pietro, and when she looked up he was gone- along with the floor that he was standing on.

Then all the alarms started to go off, causing Tony to scurry around. "I'm gonna reroute the power for reupload-" He didn't get to finish though, as Steve threw his shield, destroying the screens Tony was standing by. With a blur of motion, Tony had his Iron Man glove on his hand and was blasting Cap back towards where Cory sat. Said girl let out a terrified shriek as all the jacked up people started to fight, Wanda against Bruce, Steve against Tony.

And then Thor showed up. With a yell, he jumped atop the cradle, calling forth a storm of lightning. Cap, who had been blasted back by Tony, grabbed Cory's shaking arm and pulled her behind him, shielding the only non-combative person from the new threat. Behind him, Cory hugged her laptop to her chest, hoping that her shaking limbs wouldn't drop their hope at defeating Ultron. Thor brought his hammer down on the cradle, the power in the machine skyrocketing.

With a loud _crack_ the metal pod burst open, throwing Thor backwards, and revealing the monster within.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer** **: I don't own Marvel**

* * *

The _thing_ (for it didn't look like a human or a robot) slowly rose out of the shattered cradle, staring straight Thor with strange, human eyes. Peeking around Steve's bicep, Cory could see the red material coating the outside and that stone Ultron was so enraptured with stuck to its forehead.

With no warning, the thing flew at Thor. Thor, startled, caught the thing and threw it towards the window. It looked like it was going to crash through the glass, before it came to a screeching halt. It floated there, looking out at the city. Slowly the Avengers gathered around it, Pietro running in from wherever he had fallen. Cory, though, stayed up in the lab. She didn't want to get too close in case it was hostile.

Thor put his hammer down on the table, slowly walking towards the new being. It floated down, speaking for the first time, "I am sorry. That was… odd. Thank you." When it glanced at Thor, he copied his look, a long cape flowing down from his shoulders.

"Thor," Steve said. "You helped create this?" Cory was going to make a comment saying it was rude to say 'this,' but then she remember she had been calling him (or whatever the thing goes by) it in her head this entire time. She decided to keep her mouth shut.

"I've had a vision," Thor said, out of breath, "A whirlpool that sucks in all hope of life and at its center is that." He pointed to the stone in JARVIS' (that is what she's going with, she decided, at least until she's told otherwise) head.

"What? The gem?" Bruce said, stepping forward.

"The mind stone," Thor said. "It's one of the six Infinity Stones, the greatest power in the universe, unparalleled in its destructive capabilities." _Well that sounds like a barrel of fun_ , Cory thought. She was really started to regret her decision to join the Avengers. First she gets kidnapped by a psycho robot, then she has to jump into a plane, and now there's apparently some stones that can destroy the fucking universe.

"And you brought it here?" Steve asked incredulously.

"Stark is right," Thor answered.

"Ooh, it is definitely the end times," Bruce said. Cory snorted.

"The Avengers cannot defeat Ultron," Thor said, looking at the others in the room.

"Cory can," Bruce said. Cory cursed, hoping they wouldn't call her down. She really did not want to go anywhere near another robot. "She created a virus capable of destroying Ultron."

"Where is Cory?" Pietro asked, looking around the room. He had been wondering that for a while, but did not mention it because the red man in the room took precedence over her at the moment (though it was a close call).

"She's still in the loft," Tony said, rolling his eyes at their stupidity. "Right, Cory?"

"Yeah, but there's no way in hell I'm going down there," She called. None of the could see her, but from the sound of her voice, she was exactly where Cap left her. "I've had enough of Stark's little brain children to last me a lifetime. I can talk about it from here."

"I will get her," Pietro said, a smirk crawling its way onto his face. Steve just sighed but nodded.

"PIETRO, I SWEAR TO FUCKING GOD, IF YOU TOUCH ME, I WILL FUCKING CASTRATE YOU," Cory screamed as Pietro zipped away laughing. Within seconds, he reappeared with a very angry hacker (still hugging her laptop like her life depended on it) in his arms. He let her down, quickly running back to Wanda side, avoiding the punch that was aimed for his jaw.

"Nice of you to join us, Cory," Tony grinned.

"Up yours, asswipe," She muttered. She straightened her hoodie, smoothing her hair back from her face. Once she had fixed her appearance, she turned to the red guy, her chin held high (though her lip was between her teeth).

"Hello, Mr. Red Man." She said sticking a hand out despite her apprehension. To her delight, he slowly put his hand in her's. She smiled and shook it.

"You have created a… virus?" JARVIS-guy asked, not releasing her hand. She tried to pull it away, but alas, she was weak and he was not human. Sucks.

"Uh," She said. "Yeah. It'll wipe him clean. No programming will be left."

"He will just destroy it," He said.

"The virus is always changing, evolving," Cory said. "He can't get rid of it because he won't be able to recognize it. That's the same reason that we keep getting the common cold. It's changing and our body can't destroy it 'cause our body doesn't recognize it as harmful."

"How will you infect him?" He asked. What is this? Interrogate the hacker day?

"I need to get within a foot of him," She said, getting quite miffed with the questions. "There I can wirelessly transfer it to him. The only downside is that it will take ten minutes for it to finish Ultron off."

"Are you even on our side?" Steve said, halting questions thrown at the poor girl. The guy finally let go of Cory's hand to turn to Steve.

"You think I am a child of Ultron that fights for him? I am neither Ultron nor JARVIS, I am.. I am," The thing said.

"Nice bible reference, buddy," Cory said. "But that doesn't answer the question. Are. You. On. Our. Side?"

"I looked into your head," Wanda said, staring at the mystery robot, "and saw annihilation."

"Look again," He said kindly.

"Yeah," Clint scoffed, finally speaking up, "her opinion doesn't mean jack to me."

"I am on the side of life," He said finally. "Ultron isn't. He will destroy it all."

"What's he waiting for?" Tony asked.

"You," He said. Cory was just gonna call him Vision and see if it caught on.

"Where?" Bruce sighed. So now they were reduced to single word answers it would seem.

"Sokovia," Clint said. "He's got Nat there too." _And how long have you know that Clint?_ Cory thought, her brow pinched in a sneer. _Why did you not share that? Were you waiting for the most dramatic moment?_

Bruce slowly stalked forward, "If we're wrong about you, if you're the monster Ultron made you to be…"

"What will you do?" Vision whispered, tilting his head. Cory wasn't sure if he meant it as a challenge, but it sure came off that way. When no one answered, Vision continued. "I don't want to kill Ultron. He's unique, and he's in pain. But that pain will roll over the Earth, so he must be destroyed. Every form he's built, every trace of his presence on the net. We have to act now, and not one of us can do it without the others. Maybe I am a monster, I don't think I would know if I were one. I'm not what you are and not what you intended, so there may be no way to make you trust me. But we need to go." With that he picked up Mjölnir and handed it to Thor, causing everyone to stare at him in wonder and confusion.

"Alright," Thor said, smiling. He patted Tony on the shoulder, giving him a cheery, "Well done!"

"So what's the plan?" Bruce finally asked.

"Well, I'll need an Ultron to upload my virus to," Cory said, instantly shifting into business mode. "If they're all connected like Vision seemed to think they are, I should be able to take them all down by just infecting one. The only problem is, I like failed PE and can't fight for shit. There is no way I can do anything with Ultrons breathing down my neck."

"So you'll need an escort," Steve said. Cory nodded.

"I'll do it!" Pietro said, his hand rocketing into the air. "I can out run Ultron, and so Ultron will not be able to touch her."

"No," Bruce said. "We are not letting our chance at defeating Ultron rest in the hands of you. You worked for him!"

"Besides," Tony said, "I'm not about to put some innocent kid's life on the line."

"Oh my god, Tony," Cory groaned, "He's gonna help, not fucking decapitate me!"

"I have realized that Ultron was not who he said he was," Pietro said, trying to keep his cool. "I wish to help. And Cory is my friend- at least I think she is my friend," when he got a nod from her, he continued, "and I want to make sure she is safe."

"I think it's a good idea," Steve said. "The Maximoffs may have started off on the wrong foot, but they seem to want to help. And thinking about this strategically, the speed makes sense."

"So it's settled," Pietro smirked, "I escort Cory."

"Yes," Steve sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose before saying, "Three minutes. Get what you need."

As the Avengers filed out of the room, Pietro poke Cory's side with a grin. She smiled back and muttered, "I guess that means we're battlefield buddies… You better not fucking drop me."

"Never," He smirked.


	10. Chapter 10

**So I'm going on vacations so I will not be updating for the week. Once I come back, however, I will be posting the final five chapters.**

 **Thank you all for the views and support of this story. It honestly makes me so happy.**

 **I've gotten some questions about the ending, you know involving a certain speedster biting the dust. I can't really say anything, but I hope you know whatever decision I make, it's what I thought was best for this story.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel**

* * *

The Avengers split, each going to grab their gear from wherever they kept it. Pietro and Wanda stayed where they were, unsure of what to do. Cory, who had been on her way to pick up her duffel bag filled with gear that she had left with Stark at the very beginning of this, stopped and turned towards the twins.

"Right… You don't have anything here," She frowned.

"I stocked up!" Tony called from his lab, "Some stuff should be in the same room as your bag."

"Thanks, Tony," Cory yelled back, before beckoning the twins to follow her. "I'll show you where it is."

She took them down the corridor, humming a tune Pietro didn't recognize as she went. They passed many doors before she stopped at one. Opening it, Pietro looked inside to see a simple room. Shelves lined the walls and there was a clear view of the balcony where Vision and Thor were.

Seeing an athletic shirt and running shoes, Pietro moved to get them, watching out of the corner of his eye as Cory peeled off her hoodie to reveal a black tank top. His eyes ghosted over her shoulders, taking the curve of her neck. Pietro grabbed the shoes from the shelf, trying to keep his eyes off of the newly revealed skin.

Just like Pietro, Cory watched as he pulled his shirt over his head (though she really wasn't trying to hide it as much as he was), nearly choking when she saw how muscular he was. Dude did not look like he would have had a six pack. Shaking her head, Cory tried to reach her duffel bag, but failed due to the fact that Tony had pushed it all the way back and she was short. Cursing her genetics, Cory reached up on her tip toes, but still came short of reaching the bag.

Pietro, watching this with a barely contained smirk, sauntered over to the struggling girl. He easily reached the bag, holding it out to her. When Cory turned to grab it, though, she nearly smacked right into his left pectoral because of how close he stood to her. Did she mention the fact that HE NEVER PUT HIS NEW SHIRT ON? Her face flushed. She snatched her bag, and moved to the bench behind her to sort through her things. Pietro smirked at her reaction as he pulled on his shirt, storing the information away for another time.

"If you two are done flirting," Wanda quipped, "we have a robot to defeat."

"First of all we are not flirting," Cory hissed.

"No, no, we definitely were," Pietro smiled, poking at her nerves. He enjoyed the wide array of emotions. He enjoyed watching them flit across Cory's face with little to no attempt at keeping them hidden. He enjoyed how easy it was to read her, to know what she was thinking.

"Second of all," Cory grunted, giving Pietro glare, "I saw the googly eyes you were giving Vision, so don't give me that bullshit."

"Vision?" Wanda asked. Cory shrugged in response, but said no more. "Well, I was not giving him 'googly eyes' regardless of what you call him."

"No you totally were," Cory grinned as she pulled a few heavy looking pieces of machinery out of the bag.

"Hey, how much are you going to be bringing?" Pietro asked, notice that she was placing some things into an overstuffed sling bag. "I'm gonna have to carry you and that bag."

Raising an eyebrow, Cory gave him a pointed look and growled, "Are you calling me heavy?"

"No!" Pietro said. "I am, uh." With that he zoomed towards the hacker and picked her and the bag up, testing the weight. "This is fine! I can carry both!"

"Nice save, buddy," Cory muttered, heaving herself out his arms. Landing on her feet, she grabbed her bag and walked towards the door, just as Steve told them to hurry up through the comm they had shoved in their ears. "Now let's go kick some robot ass... I think I just quoted something."


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm back from vacation, which means Just Like the Movies will be continuing! The good news is while I was gone I did manage to write a oneshot for the story so it won't be too long after the story ends that I will be posting them.**

 **Thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel**

* * *

As they flew towards Sokovia, the Avengers looked at each other, wondering if they would all make it out. Cory was curled up next to Wanda, the normally standoffish woman letting her lean on her shoulder. Pietro sat on the hacker's other side, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. The smaller girl hugged her knees, drawing them up to her chest. She hoped that everyone would get through this in one piece. She actually liked them.

Finally, Steve stood to give what Cory thought was supposed to be a pep talk- thought she just ended up being even more depressed. "Ultron knows we're coming. Odds are we'll be riding into heavy fire. And that's what we signed up for, but the people of Sokovia, they didn't. So our priority is getting them out. All they want is to live their lives in peace, and that's not gonna happen today. But we can do our best to protect them, and we can get the job done. We find out what Ultron's been building, we find Romanoff, and we clear the field. Keep the fight between us.

"Ultron thinks we're monsters, that we're what's wrong with the world. This isn't just about beating him, it's about whether he's right."

No one said anything, but Cory couldn't take the silence for long. Without moving, her face staying emotionless, she whispered, "I've done some terrible shit, like stuff that I would land me a one way ticket downstairs when I die. For a long time, I was a monster. And I'm sure some of you are in the same boat. We've all done things that we regret. We've all hurt people. But that doesn't mean that Ultron is right. There's a thin line between being a hero and being a monster. It took me a while to find that line. But Ultron… He will never be able to see it. I guess the true question is, will we continue this fight without stepping over that line, or will we be pushed into the abyss on the other side?"

Pietro put his hand on her leg, smiling at her when their eyes met. In that smile, Pietro made Cory a promise, one that he hoped everyone else would keep in their battle against Ultron. He promised not to cross the line, and make sure that she doesn't either. He would keep her from the edge of the abyss, making sure neither of them fell in.

* * *

When the quinjet landed, the team looked around the peaceful town, their faces grim. With a nod, Cap ran off to start evacuating citizens, Wanda and Clint following suit soon after. But that was only three people, and there was a whole city to empty. They needed more people, and they really needed Pietro's speed. But that meant that they would have to split. Cory faced Pietro with determination, hoping that he wouldn't shoot her down immediately.

"You need to help them evacuate," she said curtly. They really didn't have time to beat around the bush.

"I need to wait with you," Pietro raised an eyebrow. "We need to be ready for when Ultron shows up."

"Well look around, there's no Ultron!" Cory flung her arms around her, her face contorting with impatience. "They need more hands. I can help the people, and you can help the people."

"And then when Ultron comes you will be defenseless," Pietro growled, not wanting to fight with her. Pietro really didn't get why this was an argument. She was the one who said she can't fight, so why was she trying to go back on that now.

"I brought some little devices that send out EMPs," She huffed, "If they come after me before you get to me, that'll take 'em down until you make it to me!"

"And how will I find you?" Pietro asked. He still thought the idea was terrible, but he could see in her eyes that she wasn't going to listen to anything he said. She would probably just run off if he said no (not that he couldn't catch her, but he doubted that would improve the relationship he wanted to build with her once this was over).

"Here,"Cory said. She handed him a small phone like screen that had a map of the city and two small blips on it, one red and one white. "I'm the white one. Find me when Ultron rears his ugly head, kay?"

With a drawn out sigh, Pietro nodded. Cory grinned at him, happy she was getting her way. In the rush of triumph- though she swears she wasn't thinking straight- she stood on her tip toes and pecked him on the cheek. Pietro watched as she sprinting away to go help civilians, his cheeks burning bright red. Shaking his head, he started to run for the police station.


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel**

* * *

"Come on love, you got to jump," Cory yelled to the little girl stuck on a ledge. Her mother had disappeared, leaving her sobbing on the concrete. Cory found her there just a minute ago, knowing she had to add the girl to her growing pack of children following her. "I promise I'll catch you."

The girl, not even eight, gave one more fearful look over the edge before closing her eyes and leapt away from the wall. The girl landed in her arms, and Cory instantly pulled the girl close. She readjusted the kid, rubbing soothing circles into her back. "Ok little ones, let's go, we have to get out of the city." She led the kids, none of which were over ten, to the bridge that Captain America was guarding.

"Cory, why aren't you with Pietro?" Cap called when he saw her herding the kids to the bridge, the girl still in her arms.

"We decided to split to evacuate the people," Cory yelled back. "He has a tracker with him. He'll find me once Ultron shows up."

And then, as if waiting for her to mention it, robots started to tear their way out of the ground, shooting at the people running in fear. Cory rushed to get the children across the bridge, hoping to get them out of the line of fire. There were robots everywhere, shooting at people, destroying the bridge beneath their feet. Frankly, she was scared shitless, but she had to be strong for the people. Cory grabbed a woman who was running, shoving the terrified girl into her arms. The woman, startled, accepted the kid.

The robots were coming closer, trying to hurt the people. Cap was stuck at the end of the bridge, Cory was on her own. Making sure the people were behind her, she pulled a small rectangle out of her pocket. When the robots were on the group, just about to attack, she chucked the rectangle at them. She let out a breath when they fell to the ground, fried by the EMP.

Her relief was short lived, however, as the bridge started to crumple underneath her. Looking back, she made sure everyone was far enough away that they wouldn't fall before turning to sprint back to safety on the other side. The ground shook as the bridge started to lift. But it wasn't just the bridge, it was the entire city.

With a final leap, Cory jumped to safety, Cap grabbing arm to steady her when she hit the ground. Gazing into the darkness below her, watching the city raise up, she turned to Cap with a grim smile. "Is this a bad time to mention I'm scared of heights?"

* * *

Pietro watched in grim fascination as the Ultrons ripped their way out of the ground. He knew he had to get to Cory and fast. Pulling out the tracker, he noticed her blip was not to far from him. He started to run, heading down the street to the left of him. He didn't get very far, though, as the street literally crumpled before him. Screeching to a halt, he just barely caught himself before he plunged over the side. Within seconds he heard Ultron's voice, speaking to the city through his many robots.

"Do you see? The beauty of it. The inevitability. You rise only to fall. You, Avengers, you are my meteor, my swift and terrible sword, and the Earth will crack with the weight of your failure. Purge me from your computers, turn my own flesh against me. It means nothing. When the dust settles, the only thing living in this world will be metal."

The comm device in Pietro's ear crackled to life soon after Ultron finished his speech. Pietro almost fell over from relief when her heard Cory's voice and knew that she was alright.

"Wow, these robot dudes really like their bible references," She spoke. "Now, why don't we go all Revelations on their asses and bring about their end days."

"Nice pep talk," Tony laughed. In reality, all of the people listening were glad she spoke. It eased the tensions, made them realize that the fight might not be so bad. With a grin, Pietro resumed his dash through the city, destroying the robots in his path. "Cap you got incoming."

"Incoming already came in," Cap grunted. "Cory, watch out!" He yelled. Pietro's heart dropped. Waiting quite impatiently, the speedster grew anxious when there was nothing. Then came the crackle. "Pietro, you better get your ass over here. I can't protect Cory the entire time." He saved her.

Pietro stopped for a moment to catch his breath, hoping he didn't push himself too far too quickly. He'd still have to protect Cory.

"Stark, you focus on bringing the city down safely," Cap continued, "The rest of us have one job, tear these things apart. You get hurt, hurt 'em back. You get killed, walk it off."

"Hate to break it to you Cap," Cory said, not missing a beat, "but band-aids don't fix bullet holes."

"Did you just quote Taylor Swift?" Clint asked. Cory cracked up not a second later.

"And you know that because?" Cory said in between gasps of air.

"I have a daughter," The archer huffed.

"Uh-huh, sure," The hacked giggled.

"Cory," Pietro interjected, noticing how she stopped laughing and gave him her attention immediately. "I am almost to you. Are you ready?"

"Yeah," She answered, "But I'll need a live Ultron. Preferably one without limbs."

"Leave that to me," Tony said.

"Let's get this bastard," Cory said, ending the conversation. The comms fell into silence. Pushing himself harder, Pietro exited the alley he was in and ended up by the bridge where Cory was located. Not stopping, he picked her up and zoomed off to find Stark.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel**

* * *

Pietro stopped in a small open space, putting Cory down so he could catch his breath. He really didn't know if he could keep this up for the entire time, but he would have to. For Cory. For the world. He had to keep running to keep them safe.

"I see ya Speedy and Geeky," Tony said not long after they stopped, dropping an Ultron into the center of the street. "I have a delivery for Miss Howlett. One fresh Ultron, hold the limbs."

"You're late," Cory said rolling her eyes. She hurried over to the robot regardless, pulling her laptop out of her bag. "Does that mean it's free?"

"Do you really want to pay for it?" He laughed. "Well, I have more robots to destroy. Have fun with your robot and real boy."

"Way to make it creepy," Cory sighed.

As Tony flew away, Pietro straightened up from his stooped stature. Inching closer to the hacker, he noticed that the Ultron was staring right at her as she kneeled beside it, anger clearly visible on its face. Cory obviously noticed by the way she looked anywhere but the robot's face, instead choosing to stare at her screen, waiting for everything to boot up.

When she took out a small black box, the Ultron broke its silence. "You know, I liked you Cory."

Pietro stayed off to the side, not wanting to interfere with her work. Cory, though, wished he would come closer. It would give her a sense of peace and a feeling of protection. "Do you always kidnap people you like? Are you taking notes from Bowser?"

Completely ignoring her- which seemed to be a common theme in the world Cory had entered when she accepted Tony's offer- Ultron continued. "You understand what it's like to be surrounded by impurities. I know your past, I've known it since I saw you back at the quinjet. You worked so hard to rid your small corner to the shadows that overtook it."

"You don't know _anything_ about me," Cory hissed, hitting the keys just a bit more forcefully than necessary. She knew what Ultron was doing. He was trying to stall, trying to stop her from uploading his demise. Anything. It was the desperate pleading of a dying man. Except it was manipulative as all hell and he wasn't a man.

"You know, the Avenger won't let you see your family," Ultron whispered, changing tactics. "If you reunite with them, you won't want to risk their lives again by getting involved with the Avengers. They know that. They won't let you see them because they'll lose their little hacker."

"Shut up," Cory growled, her eyes flashing with barely concealed rage. Her fingers were shaking, her typing becoming less sure. Pietro tensed, wanting nothing more than to rip the robot to shreds for hurting her like that. But that robot was their only chance.

"You deny it, but deep down, you know it's true," Ultron said. "The Avengers don't care about you."

"You know that's not true, Cory," Pietro spoke up. He had to keep his promise, keep her rooted on the edge of the abyss. But she was so close to falling right over the side, so close to giving into her rage and doing something drastic. "The Avengers, while they are sometimes misguided, they are good people. I was too blinded by vengeance to see that before, but _you_ , Cory, _you_ showed me how wrong I was about them."

"They were only kind to you because they knew you could help them," Ultron said. Cory's typing had slowed down considerably by now, her eyes flashing with tears.

"They were kind to you because they wanted to be," Pietro insisted. He smiled softly at her when her eyes flashed to him."The Captain protected you in the lab despite the virus already being finished, the others have shown concern for you this entire time. The Avengers care about you. I care about you. If you don't do this, there won't be a you or me or Avengers. It'll all be gone."  
Pietro watched her face, hoping that his little speech had worked. He really did care for her, and he couldn't bear to lose everything he had- including the girl kneeling in rubble before him- so soon after he gained it. He wanted to stop her pain, just take her away from the fight, but she had to stay. She had to finish what she started. She looked at him one last time, her eyes boring into his. Scanning his face, she smiled lightly before turning back to her computer and Ultron. He almost cried when her fingers started to move again, typing faster than before.

The robot let out a breath of air. "You know, I was hoping that it wouldn't come to this."

Pietro's eyebrows fused in confusion, unsure of what he meant. But then the comm in his ear crackled to life once more. "Where are all the Ultron's going?" Clint yelled, the sounds of screaming filtering through the static.

"Um, I think they're heading for Cory," Tony said a second later. "Sonic, Kid, you got incoming. A lot of incoming. I'll take as many out as I can, but you might want to hurry up."

"Cory, please tell me you're almost done," Pietro pleaded, watching the sky for Ultrons.

Without saying anything, she slammed one more button before pressing something on the side of the box. After another agonisingly slow second- at least from Pietro's point of view- she slammed her laptop shut, throwing her gear into her bag. She stood up, her eyes locking on the Ultron with a mirthless smile.

"You have ten minutes fucker," She hissed, spitting on the robot's face.


	14. Chapter 14

**A huge thanks to** **EmpressLupin for reviewing so often! I'm incredibly happy that you enjoy the story!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel**

* * *

"We're gonna have every Ultron he can spare on our asses," Cory said as she moved to Pietro, her face once again concealing her emotions. She couldn't hide the redness or puffiness of her eyes though. That, however, was the only sign of her almost break down.

"I will keep them away from you," Pietro said, closing the distance between them, their faces close. He took her in, noticing how her face turned red. He had to stoop his shoulder a bit, but once he was close enough, he pecked her on the cheek. Pulling away, he picked her up, settling her comfortably in his arms.

"Take Cory to the west side of the city," Cap said into the comm just as Ultrons finally started to appear on their street corner. "Fury and Hill just showed up with boats and SHIELD agents. She'll be safer there."

Pietro didn't respond- mostly because there were robot everywhere- but instead started to sprint towards the what he thought was the west. When Cory didn't correct him, he assumed he was right.

There were Ultrons everywhere. Pietro couldn't destroy them with Cory in his arms so he would have to go around them, or take another route altogether. As he kept running, his breath kept getting shorter and shorter, his legs burning. He couldn't keep this up forever.

"Old man," Pietro huffed into the comm, stopping briefly on a side road with no Ultrons. "I'm heading towards you, I need some of these Ultron's off of me."

"You better not be talking to me," Clint said. When Pietro let out a breathy laugh- which Cory thought was very hot, especially from her spot situated by his chest- Clint grumbled something before saying, "Yeah whatever."

"Dude, he's not that much older than you," Cory said once the comm died down.

"Do you even know my age?" Pietro asked rolling his eyes. His breath was coming back to him. The Ultrons had stopped coming at them for the moment, probably due to the other Avengers.

"Uh," Cory hesitated, confirming his belief. Admittedly, he didn't know her age either, but he always thought of her to be relatively close to his. "It's never come up?

"Twenty-three," He finally answered.

"Twenty-two," She said, "So close to being triplets."

The moment was ruined by Ultrons coming back full force. Pietro fled, his arms grasping Cory tightly. As he sped along, he registered Iron Man shooting the Ultron's trailing him. He couldn't stop to say thanks, but told himself he would remember to thank him later.

Reaching Clint, he stopped for a moment, noticing Wanda not to far away, tearing some Ultrons apart with her powers. Clint took out the last few robots trailing them, giving the speedster a much needed reprieve. He let Cory down, doubling over, his palms on his knees.

"You look tired," Clint said. He tried to keep a smirk off his face but failed miserably.

"Pietro! Cory!" Wanda called, cutting off Pietro's retort. "Are you two ok?" She pushed forward, wrapping her arms around her brother who had stood to greet her. Cory smiled at the heart warming scene before her.

"We are fine, sister," Pietro cooed, pushing her hair back from her face. "Cory did her job."

"So why is every Ultron coming after you?" Clint asked.

"He probably thinks I can get rid of the virus, which I can't," Cory said, pushing her hair behind her ear. Even though she didn't fight, she was covered in soot, her pants being the worst off. "Bitch only has seven minutes though."

"Good," Clint said rubbing his hand down his face. "I don't have that many arrows left."

Pietro, finally having his breath back, beckoned Cory back to his side so he could lift her into his arms once more. Once she was situated, he turned to Wanda and Clint. "I have to get her to the boats. Then I will help you."

Without waiting for a response, he ran off.

* * *

Cory always had a problem with motion sickness (and the rapidly thinning air sure as hell didn't help) but she choked down the bile rising, choosing to instead bury her head in Pietro's chest, screwing her eyes shut. She was counting down the time in her head, wishing the last six minutes would go by faster.

Feeling Pietro stop, she opened her eyes. They weren't at the boat. No, they were stuck at an intersection, every way blocked with Ultrons. "I'm gonna have to put you down," Pietro whispered, gearing up to fight the robots. He hated that he had to leave her, but he couldn't fight them with her in his arms.

He put her down and immediately started to rush the robots, destroying three of them before Cory had even registered that she was on the ground. He pushed himself to the limit, ripping two more to shreds before she took her next breath.

Cory thought he could do it, destroy all of them before they could retaliate, but she forgot about the ones behind her. He did too. Neither of them noticed the robot lining up a shot, carefully making sure it was nonlethal. It was the bang that got their attention. Pietro turned from the robot he was dismantling, giving the robot the opportunity to whack him in the head. He quickly turned to destroy it, but didn't miss the painfully slow shriek Cory let out.

"CORY!" Pietro screamed, rushing to catch her before she hit the ground. She shook her head, wrenching herself out of his arms and nodding to the fast approaching Ultrons. Nodding back, he quickly disposed of the robots. He kneeled next to Cory once he was done.

"It's just grazed me," Cory groaned, her hands covering her left leg. Her pants leg was ripped, blood seeping into the surrounding fabric. "I'll be fine."

Pietro, still worried, slowly picked her up, wincing when she gasped in pain. He felt proud of her, though, that she was taking the pain as well as she was. She was just a civilian when it came down to it, and getting shot hurt like hell.

Starting to run again, he kept a careful eye on her face, hoping her new wound and blood loss wouldn't affect her tolerance to his speed.

As the Ultron's timer hit three, Pietro finally reached the edge of the city where SHIELD had parked their boats. Citizens were still entering the floating ships, SHIELD agents helping the wounded. Rushing over, he was stopped by a woman with dark brown hair.

"Pietro Maximoff," She said, her eyes flickering his face and the girl curled up against his chest. "We haven't had the pleasure to met yet. I'm Agent Maria Hill."  
"Hello," He said, hoping he didn't sound too impatient. "I need a medic, Cory was shot."

"Where?" She asked. He noticed the worry enter her eyes, and followed her when she motioned him forward. Laying the normally lively girl on across the seat, he showed the agent where she was hurt. Nodding to herself, Hill said, "That shouldn't be too bad of a fix. I'll call the medic."

Pietro sighed sitting down on the ground next to her. He promised to help out, but he wanted to make sure that Cory was ok before he went back out.

"How are you feeling?" She asked. "You ran way more than you usually do."

"I should be asking you that," He chuckled, before he sobered. "I'm sorry you got hurt. I said I would protect you and I failed."

"Pietro, it's just a graze," Cory said. She grabbed his hand, giving it a squeeze. "It's not like I'm dead."  
"But-"

"Hey," She said as she pushed herself into a sitting position, grunting when her leg moved. Pietro protested, trying to get her to sit back down, but she waved him away. "I would have died if you weren't with me. Hell, I probably wouldn't even have finished downloading the virus if it wasn't for you. I don't blame you for my leg."

"How sweet," Clint laughed as he stumbled onto the boat, laying down opposite Cory. "What happened to coming back to help us, Speedy?"

"Cory was hurt," Pietro said, his hand still holding hers tightly. "I wanted to make sure she was alright."

"It was just a graze," She muttered. Before they could start bickering, a man in a SHIELD uniform hurried over to the trio, introducing himself as John the medic.

"I need to take you to the other boat," He said softly, his hands poking around the sensitive flesh near her wound. "I have my materials there." With that he picked her up, her hand finally slipping from Pietro's, and started over to the other airship. Pietro clenched his jaw as he saw the man holding her, his hands dangerously close to her butt.

"You like her?" Clint asked. He didn't move, just continued to lay on his back, staring at the ceiling. Pietro was unsure if he asked because of his anger over the medic, or if he was just that obvious.

"She is my friend," Pietro answered. Truthfully, he wasn't sure how he felt. He had just met the girl after all, but he did care for her. He consider her to be what people often call a crush, and if that turned into something more, he certainly wouldn't protest. Cory is definitely a pretty girl.

"Yeah sure," Clint laughed, turning his head to look out into the city. He sat up a second later, his brow pinched in confusion. Muttering something under his breath, his shot up and ran off, back into the city. Pietro stood also, unsure of what just happened. Scanning the city, he saw Clint pick up a small child not too far from the boat.

Out of the corner of his eye, Pietro caught a flash of movement as an Ultron flew in with a quinjet, blasting the ground with bullets. The path was heading right for Clint and the child. Without thinking, Pietro sprinted towards the two, knowing he couldn't move them. He would have to shield them.

Cory, who was watching the same scene unfold from the medical area, watched as the determination flash across Pietro's face. Knowing exactly what he was planning, she tried to stand only to be restrained by the medic, his arms holding her down to her place on the makeshift cot. She let out a shrill, "Pietro!" hoping that he would stop. He didn't.

As bullets inched their way closer to Pietro, he closed his eyes, thinking only of his sister and Cory. He heard her scream and ignored her, instead choosing to wait patiently for the first time in his life. He would get his second chance. He would make up for all the things he did when this whole mess started.

But nothing happened. There was no pain, there were no bullets. Cracking his eyes open, Pietro watched as the quinjet fell, the Ultron behind the wheel slumped over. Then more Ultrons started to fall, all of them lifeless when they hit the ground. With a grin, he turned to Clint, holding out a hand to the man who had crouched over the kid.

"You were going to protect me?" Clint asked, unsure as to how he was supposed to take the action.

"Yes," Pietro said. "But there was no need. Cory's virus worked. Ultron is gone." Turning to look at the girl, his eyes darkened to see that the same medic had his arms wrapped around her midsection. He shook his head, noticing that she was yelling at the man even though he could not hear her (he was sure there was a lot of cursing though). He cursed himself for the anger and jealousy that surged through him, thinking that it wasn't his place as she wasn't involved with him.

"Stark," Cap's voice came through the comms, interrupting the speedster (who was stuck in his thoughts about the girl in the boat) and the archer. "The Ultrons are down, but the city's still up. How long til you can get this place safely on the ground?"

"Give me five minutes," Stark said. "By the way, nice work on that virus kid. I admit, had my doubts."

"YOU BETTER LET ME GO, YOU GODDAMN- Thanks Tony," Cory said.

"Is that Pietro kid touching you?" Tony joked, knowing exactly how to push the Sokovian's (and Cory's) buttons. "I knew I saw him giving you googly eyes."

"NO, IT'S THIS FREAKING MEDIC," She replied, her voice instantly rising an octave when she talked about her annoyance. "I JUST WANT TO MOVE MY LEG. IT'S CRAMPING."

"She is fine," Pietro said into the comm, "And I would not touch her unless she was willing."

Within seconds, the comm was roaring in his ears, different Avengers commenting on Pietro's little quip. Pietro laughed as Wanda scolded him in Sokovian (which she slipped into when it came to situations like this) and Cory muttered something about him being a pervert. Smiling to himself, he moved towards where Cory was situated, waiting for Wanda to find him so he could be with his favorite people. This turned out way better than he thought it would. It was almost like a movie.

* * *

 **So that is it! Well, there's still the epilogue, but this is the last official chapter of Just Like the Movies!**

 **Be sure to keep an eye out for oneshots being posted in the future**


	15. Epilogue

**I want to thank everyone who read the story, it means so much to me that you all kept reader.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel**

* * *

Pietro was with Wanda in the new Avengers Tower waiting for training to start. He despised being told what to do, but he admitted that the Avengers did know what they were talking about. Especially Natasha.

Shortly after the events in Sokovia, the twins were offered a place on the team and a new home in the tower that Stark was going to build to house the superheroes. They had moved in almost right away since they really had no other place to stay.

Pietro had also not seen Cory since she was taken away to have her leg stitched up (so much for it being just a graze). Stark had muttered something along the lines of her having some loose ends to tie up when he asked about her, but Natasha had told him that she was not a definite member of the Avengers. She was too vulnerable. Besides, she had told him, she wasn't sure she even wanted to.

He wasn't sure how he felt about never seeing her again. It upset him sure, he liked her quite a bit, but he also wanted her to be happy. If her happiness didn't lie in the Avengers (and _him_ ) then he would suck it up.

Wanda knew how he felt. She could feel his emotions, his conflicting thoughts over the hacker, and tried to comfort him, tried to keep his hopes up. He appreciated it, but it didn't help. He wanted to see her again. He wanted to build something with her, figure out how she fit into his life- because he knew that she did somehow.

When the door opened, he didn't turn, figuring it was just Steve coming in for their session. And it was Steve. With a guest. "Holy shit this place is huge," A very familiar voice exclaimed. Pietro whipped around, taking in the girl he had been hoping to see.

She wore a black tee and jeans, her hair was much neater than it had been any of the times he had seen her before, and her glasses were actually situated on the right place on her nose. When she moved, he noticed a slight limp and she favored her right leg. But she looked fine. Better than fine. Pietro felt his heart race as he took her in for the first time without any underlying fear and panic floating around. And she looked hot. Without realizing it, he zoomed over to her side, a dazed look still etched on his face.

"Uh, you good Pietro?" Cory asked, her eyebrows raised. God, even the way she said his name was different (and better) now that the fight was over. She was more relaxed and less scared. Words rolled of her tongue better.

"Yes," He breathed. He grinned after a second. "I'm just glad to see you."

"Well hun," She grinned back, "You'll be seeing a _lot_ of me now that we live in the same building."


End file.
